Wednesday, December 28, 2011

A year in reflection?

Well I wanted to reflect back on what this last year has been like...and then I remembered....I can't even remember what tasks I completed last freakin week for crying out loud!!!!
I guess this is the beginning of my realization as I turn 40 in a few days...that things are not like they were even 10 years ago!!!!
10 years ago, I was just turning 30....and I remember looking back at those ten years and thinking....what have I accomplished. NOW...as I turn the corner to the new decade of the 40's and I think...OH CRAP....what I have I accomplished....and after the heart rate comes down, I realize....I have accomplished A LOT!
I have always lived my life without any regrets, I won't change a darn thing, not the good the bad or the ugly...it's all MY life and I like it....just wish I could remember all of it LOL.
I remember as a kid being irritated when my parents did not remember things, things that I thought were so simple and how in the freakin world could they NOT remember...well...I am now that age, and I have kids that say "oh Mom, you remember......" and I look at them with that blank stare, and they get irritated with ME now!!!!
Well, this last year brought more and new experiences, some I remember vividly, others I won't remember til someone reminds me of it, either way, I feel like it was a great year.
So I will bid this year and my 30's a goodbye, and welcome my 40's with open arms, cause one thing I know for sure....you always get wiser with age! So bring it on I say, my boobs can't sag any lower then they already are, the weird bristly dark hairs that grow from my chin can't shock me anymore then they already have, the aches and pains can only get worse, but I can be wiser with how I deal with them..and the list can go on.
So with that, it ends my year in reflection, short, sweet, and now I move on!!!!! Happy New Year all!!!! 

Saturday, December 24, 2011

Merry Schnitzel Christmas

Even the dog is relaxing!

Merry Christmas from the Cariboo
Schnitzel prep
Finished Schnitzel
Anything bacon is acceptable lol
Good ol cooking stove :-)
Yummy meal
Bacon topped stuffing

 A very Merry Christmas from our family to the internet world. We celebrated our Christmas today Dec 24. My husband is German, and it's become our tradition to carry on. We decided that since I have to work on the real Christmas day and won't be making a traditional turkey, we'd go for the German themed meal. Schnitzel and mashed potatoes and bacon topped stuffing! It was soooooooo yummy.  Okay, so the only German thing is the Schnitzel lol, but it was darn good.
After work tomorrow, we have been invited for a wonderful traditional turkey Christmas feast at a neighbors house, so we won't miss out on a good ol stuff your face feast, where afterwards we will all be in a turkey coma! It's so great to know that I won't have to do any cooking, just come home from work and dig in and enjoy!
We had a really great frugal Christmas this year too. Although we spent money on the kid, we did not spend money on each other. ( me and the hubster ) We decided that this Christmas we would only get each other things we found at the share shed. Well what a blast we had, and opening them was even funner. Just knowing that your spouse had to be innovative and be a good junk picker was so freakin funny. We both had no idea what the other one would come up with or find, cause it's always a shot in the dark with finding good things at the share shed. Well, we both did great and had sooooooooo much fun. I'll take a share shed Christmas any day over a "over priced, over spent, go in debt" one.
Happy Holidays everyone!

Tuesday, December 20, 2011

Stuff we find for free at the Share Shed & Dump!

This is what the Share Shed looks like
So now you can see some pictures of the madness that has taken over this house. FREE STUFF....seemed so weird to us when we first moved here from the city. This share shed thing was GREAT. You can just drive up, and take anything you want because it's left there by others for that purpose. We have taken many things there ourselves too, but we tend to take more goodies than drop off lol!
Over the last few years this is a list of some of things we have found and brought home:
lawnmowers (three to be exact, all work perfectly, I tend to break them so it's really great)
rototillers (two, one electric one gas powered)
beds and frames
many many tools
garden tools and fencing
books
computer AND printers
fridge
games
futons
jars
cans (we love weekenders..peeps from the city, cause they leave all their empties at the shed before they leave, and then we come along and take them in and get anywhere from 5 bucks to 50 bucks, depends on how good the haul is LOL) oh stop it, I'M NOT CHEAP...IT'S FREE MONEY!!!
This list goes on, but you get my point...ANYTHING and EVERYTHING has been seen at the dump and share shed. We have seen full cars, a old ambulance, boats (tons of those in the summer) some good some not so good, usually everyone goes and pilfers what they need off of them lol. There is a local saying around here when you are showing someone what you have, they'll ask you where you got that, and you just tell them at the "mall" and everyone knows you mean the dump LMAO
So anyways, this is what us crazy country folk like doing...share shedding...what a romantical way to spend a few hours with my hubby!!!!
Awesome amount of cookie cutters!
Awesome man thingy my husband loves LMAO

White dresser found at the SS


Gazebo found at SS
Yup, even plants in pots are left there!

Monday, December 19, 2011

Things I have learned to live with and without.

This is my clothes dryer
Wood heat
VERY small propane stove
My oldie but goodie
Since moving from the city 3 years ago, my attitude about my wants and needs has changed! How or why this happened.....ummmmmmm, not sure...it just did...and I like it quite frankly. It's made me a better person.
I no longer HAVE to have the best of everything or the desire to have the best of it all. I am very content with things that work and not things that are sparkly and brand new lol. For example, we heat with a wood stove. There is no getting up and just turning the thermostat up and getting the house warm, it's all about carrying the wood in, getting a few days worth next to the stove and starting one or keeping it going, even if it's 3am and your freakin cold! Our stove is not brand new, we got it for $60 and it works like a charm, heats our house just fine.
My old washing machine, it's not one of those fancy ol front loaders, it's one of those oldies, but hey, it cleans my clothes, and since we have well water it's better anyways, the new machine would get ruined by the iron that would go thru it. (we don't have a water softener yet) As for a dryer....well as you can see from the pic, my clothes hang to dry on a line inside in the winter, and outside for the rest of the time. At first it bugged me, not having those wonderfully soft clothes from the dryer, but now, WHO CARES, if I need them softened up, I can take a quick iron over them, no biggy. In the winter, the clothes dry faster inside anyways with the wood heat in the house. So not only are we saving on heating costs (all the wood is off of our land) and no dryer which means electric bill is not sky high from dryer use. (not that it's a HUGE amount, but something is better then nothing)
So, since we are in renovations here for the last three years and probably for the next 5 lol, there are lots of things not yet hooked up or put in yet. We have a On Demand hot water system, bathtub, new Schluter shower, toilets, ect. So for now, the SMALL propane stove I am using is just fine, it only holds the smallest of cookie sheets and you can only put in a very small turkey but that's okay with me. You work with what you have!
As many of you know, I lived without a TOILET for two years as well. At first it was difficult, but over time you learn to live with it. It's amazing what you get used to, and what your able to tolerate. If I can do THAT, I can do anything. I am however, VERY happy to a have a nice flushing toilet now!
I no longer need to have what the neighbors have, or what the latest and greatest thing is, I am content with what works! This lifestyle is not for everyone, but it's for me!!!!

Wednesday, December 14, 2011

50 Things Everyone Should Know How To Do

1. Build a fire
2. Operate a computer
3. Use Google effectively
4. Preform CPR and the Heimlich Maneuver
5. Drive a manual transmission vehicle
6. Do basic cooking
7. Tell a story that captivates people's attention
8. Win or avoid a fist fight
9. Deliver bad news
10. Change a tire
11. Handle a job interview
12. Manage time
13. Speed read
14. Remember names
15. Relocate living spaces
16. Travel light
17. Handle the police
18. Give driving directions
19. Preform basic first aid
20. Swim
21. Parallel park
22. Recognize personal alcohol limits
23. Select good produce
24. Handle a hammer, axe or handsaw
25. Make a simple budget
26. Speak at least two common languages
27. Do push-up and sit-ups properly
28. Give a complitment
29. Negotiate
30. Listen carefully to others
31. Recite basic geography
32. Paint a room
33. Make a short, informative public speech
34. Smile for the camera
35. Flirt without looking ridiculous
36. Take useful notes
37. Be a respectful house guest
38. Make a good first impression
39. Navigate with a map and compass
40. Sew a button onto clothing
41. Hook up a basic home theater system
42. Type
43. Protect personal identity information
44. Implement basic computer security best practices
45. Detect a lie
46. End a date politely without making any promises
47. Remove a stain
48. Keep a clean house
49. Hold a baby
50. Jump start a car

So....have you or can you do all of the list? Interesting isn't it! I found it thought provoking :-)

Monday, December 12, 2011

Ummmm, what's wrong with this picture?

Besides EVERYTHING lol.Well, as you can see, my crochet learning is STILL going strong. However, as you can see in the pic, the white one started out with like 24 stitches, and then somehow went down to 14, and then gained some again...and the blue one has some crazy dipsy doodle thing right from the get go on the bottom lol. I swear I am NOT drinking wine and crocheting!!!! So it's not clear to me yet as to what I am doing wrong, and my teacher has not been at work to be able to ask...anyone out in cyber world have any advice lol? So last night I am laying in my chair, practicing, and my husband chirps from the other side of the couch "your doing it wrong, your not holding the needle right"....WELL......I give him the "look"...kept going...like seriously, is this man insane? What does HE know about crocheting...lol...SOOOOOOOOO apparently when he was a small boy his Mom taught him this. So I tossed him the yarn and needle and said "have at her smarty pants"...so there he stood....talking to himself, thread and needle in hand....and this pleased my devilish side....to know that he was going to go as crazy as I was over this!!!! And yes...he did...and it was great!!!!!
So....we now are BOTH practicing....yeah...great....now I am going to be competing with my husband for crochet patterns and ideas....why does this seem wrong on so many levels LMAO.

Tuesday, December 6, 2011

Chicken sweaters?

I found this on a blog tonight and I could not believe my eyes! WOW...I have seen people put sweaters on dogs and other pets....but CHICKENS...ummmmm I am so gonna make some of these once I get more professional at this whole crochet think lol. Why you ask!!! Ummmm WHY NOT....I just think it's one of those crazy things I just have to have and make lol. 

Monday, December 5, 2011

Crochet craziness!

This is my teacher Megan and I at work today, and she has finally had a break through with my learning brain! She was nice and brave enough to teach me how to crochet. I had asked every old lady I knew in town, but no one had time, and I happened to be mentioning this at work in the staff room. Well, wouldn't you know it, from the person I least expected to know how to do this....MEGAN....and she's a GENIUS at it too! Like seriously good at it...so good, she doesn't even have to follow patterns, she has made a serious art out of it and I am in awe of her!
However, I don't think she expected to have to like really really dumb it down for me. I tried warning her..."Megan...I really have NO clue what to do or how to start or even how to hold a needle" LOL. So our first 2 min lesson last week at work was how to hold the needle, next day at work, was how to tie the knot to get started, and then the next day at work she taught me how to do my first knot...WELL..she showed me a few times, I did it myself a few times and then she sent me home with some homework to try at home...ummmmmmmmmm well.....that didn't turn out so good! lol I got home that night, sat in bed, took out the needle and wool.....and.....NOTHING...had NO clue what I was taught. So back to square one....today she took some time with me and REALLY got me going this time....I was so excited at work about FINALLY understanding what to do with the needle you would have thought I won the lottery. So for the next week, I shall be stitching away squares and scarves like a crazy woman. Once I have that down pat, she will teach me how to make my first toque!
So my dream of learning how to crochet my first toque before I am 40 might actually come true! However, I only have a few more weeks to get that dream done! Anyways...I must get back to my crocheting madness!